Samsung Leads First Linux 3G Phone Design Effort

Linux as a platform for mobile devices continued to gather momentum Friday as Samsung said it and several other vendors have created what they claim will lead to the first Linux-based phones for UMTS 3G systems.

The vendors said in a statement that they have created a Linux-based reference platform for smartphones that run over UMTS and EDGE next-generation networks. The reference design supports advanced 3G services such as video calling and video streaming and supports Java-based applications, the companies said in a statement.

The smartphone will be demonstrated at next week's 3GSM World Congress in Cannes, France. Earlier this week, Linux vendor MontaVista Software said it has launched a program to get device manufacturers to use its mobile Linux platform. In addition, PalmSource has said it will port the Palm OS to Linux for use to develop smartphones and other mobile devices.

Reference designs are typically developed by vendors of the software and chipsets that would be part of the phones. They enable manufacturers to more quickly develop mobile devices using that particular technology.

The Linux platform was provided by Trolltech. Other vendors in the effort included Trolltech, which provides application development tools for Linux, Infineon Technologies, a German semiconductor vendor, and Emuzed, which develops multimedia products for mobile devices.